Meditation as practiced by the forest monks is a continuity of the meditation
tradition in Buddhism over centuries. Meditation techniques used and taught by the forest
monks are contained within the scope of the Theravada texts such as the Satipatthana
Sutta and Buddhaghosa’s Visuddhimagga. Despite the periodic decline and reform of the
monastic order in the country, this tradition has persisted more or less intact. Many forest
monks particularly the elderly are residing at urban wats and ennobling them to be
meditation centers for monks and lay people. The number of wats specialized in
meditation or teaching has been increasing in Bangkok and other urban areas. Even the
famous Wat Bovornniwet and Wat Mahathat, the traditional sites of “learning” and which
house the two Buddhist universities are propagating meditation for lay people as one of
their main activities. Other well-known urban wats that have specialized in meditation are
Wat Paknam and Wat Pleng in Thonburi, Wat Boromniwas in Bangkok, Wat
Dhammakaya in Pathumdhani, Wat Asokaram in Samutprakarn, and Wat Tha Sung in
Ayudhaya Province.